Flash mob asks Walmart for a little respect

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Last Wednesday, more than 100 DC residents and members of the Living Wages, Healthy Communities Coalition sang and danced to a revamped version of Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” as part of flash mob at a Walmart in Laurel, Maryland. In a positive piece on the protest, NBC Washington explains:

The group has a serious message — it’s asking the retailer to show respect to the District neighborhoods in which it’s planning to open new stores.

They want Walmart to meet with community leaders and guarantee, in writing, to improve the quality of life in those neighborhoods, and pay employees a living wage.

But, you know, they did it with song! Which obviously makes everything cooler… at least when the participants have talent (plus a trombone, a sax, a set of bongos and some wicked vocals).

While this action was only seen in person by a small number of shoppers and employees, as good flash mobs do, the video has already gone viral on the YouTube, being viewed more than 50,ooo times in less than a week.

To learn more about the demands of the community—and, if you live in the area, get involved—visit the Respect DC website here.

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Eric Stoner is a co-founding editor at Waging Nonviolence and an adjunct professor at Rutgers University. His articles have appeared in The Guardian, Mother Jones, Salon, The Nation, Sojourners and In These Times. Contact him securely through encrypted email by using his PGP public key or Fingerprint: F1EF 4ABE F5FD 5A86 43C7 28E9 C227 68A0 C356 5760

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